Adapting to the Moroccan way of life
Week 01 - From Tangier to Fes
The first week in Morocco has passed. We knew it would take some time to soak up all the new inputs and we feel like we have experienced and learned a lot already. On one hand we tried to take it easy and approach things slowly, on the other, due to their geographical location, we visited two of the most popular and busiest cities in Morocco, Chefchaouen and Fes.
Here is a brief diary we have kept with a couple of impressions from each day.
Day 1 - A tiring first day
Algeciras > Oued Laou
After a long day, waking up in Spain before dawn to drive to Algeciras to catch the ferry, we arrived in Morocco after noon. The immigration controls ran pretty smoothly, compared to what we had expected and heard from other travellers. So in the early afternoon we found ourselves covering our first kilometres on Moroccan roads. The first impact was strong, for example, we had not expected so many people to be on the road, sometimes apparently not really doing anything. However, on our way to our first stop in Oued Laou we already got the first warm smiles and waves from people on the road.
Our first Moroccan conversation was not exactly as friendly as we had expected. When looking for the farm of Abdou, on whose land we wanted to spend the night, we stopped in front of someone else’s gate. The man who came out invited us to leave straight away, claiming that Abdou did not rightfully own the land he lived on and was not allowed to host camper vans there. They clearly had history and it was not our fault, but we got the rant. :)
We then proceeded anyway to find Abdou, whose welcome was warm and friendly. We spent a good and very quiet night on his land, feeling safe and waking up to a view of the ocean. Abdou’s farm was very basic, however it did the job. He had water from a well to rinse our faces and a small toilet. Everything you need, for less than 4 EUR a night (40 dirhams).
Curiosity of the day: We were surprised to see police controls at almost every second roundabout. Apparently they increased the number of controls during covid and kept them since then. We have not been stopped so far, and heard they just do basic checks and very seldom stop tourists.
Day 2 - Our first hike
Oued Laou - Akchour Waterfalls - Chefchaouen
After waking up on Abdou’s farm we were ready to move on. We headed to our first hike at the Akchour waterfalls. The 8km-hike was interesting and surprisingly quiet. We met a few monkeys, some stray dogs, as is often the case in Morocco, and a few other tourists on our way back. We finished our hike enjoying a fresh orange juice and were ready to head to our first town, more precisely to the camping in Chefchaouen
Two French tourists asked us if we wanted to share a taxi to Chefchaouen, but since we were heading there anyway, we gave them a ride and had a nice chat on the way. Before leaving the carpark we met two curious Moroccan kids, who were respectfully observing us and our van. Since they did not speak any French, I started talking to the one holding a football and wearing an FC Barcelona kit. Our conversation? We listed together all the best football players, from Messi to Cristiano Ronaldo, from Lewandowski to Mbappe. After a big smile we were on the road towards Chefchaouen. We spent a quiet evening in the campsite, made a fire and had some dinner. The next day we were heading into our first medina.
Curiosity of the day In many basic Moroccan toilets (‘French style’), you have a little tap coming out of the wall and a plastic bucket on the floor. To flush the toilet, you simply fill up the bucket and throw the water in the toilet.
Day 3 - Our first (blue) medina
Chefchaouen
We got up fairly early (we haven’t been doing so well in waking up early since arriving in Morocco) to get ready to head into town and visit the Medina of the blue city Chefchaouen. Despite being quite a touristy place, and some keen sellers being very pushy, we enjoyed our day discovering the “Blue Pearl”. We wandered through the narrow alleys as the merchants started setting up their shops and stands, admiring the picturesque buildings and the blue facades. For lunch we had our first tagine and couscous, as well as our first Moroccan tea for an honest price. On the way back to the camping, we stopped to get a SIM card with unlimited (but slow) data for around 19 EUR and picked up some tomatoes and clementines for less than 1 EUR.
We ended our day enjoying a beer by the fire with Lea and Alex from @linasreisen. We had shared a spot for a night close to Tarifa in Spain a couple of weeks earlier, but did not have the chance to get to know each other back then. We had a good evening and are sure we will meet them again on the road in Morocco.
Curiosity of the day Diesel is not much cheaper in Morocco than in Spain. It currently costs around 1.2 EUR/lt in northern Morocco.
Day 4 - Staying with a Moroccan family
Chefchaouen > Jabryène
We left the camping in Chefchaouen under the rain to head to Foued’s little bar on the way to our second town, Fes. It was the first day we really got to experience the warm welcome from a Moroccan family. As we arrived to “La Ferme de Olivier”, we were greeted by a smiling Foued, his two kids and his wife, who turned out to be a great cook.
We parked our van behind the bar in the mud, next to some chickens, a donkey and the usual stray dogs. We shared the spot with a couple of other French and Belgian vans, who were also staying there. We had a nice mint tea as we arrived and ordered two vegetarian tagines for dinner. The dinner was delicious and the quiet kindness of the whole family priceless. Despite the rooster trying to steal the show during the night, we had a good night sleep and enjoyed fresh omelettes, bread and jam for breakfast the next morning.
Curiosity of the day Chickens often sleep on trees, to keep safe from predators. We parked right next to the tree, and had around 10 chickens above us as we all slept.
Day 5 - Our first roadside coffee
Jabryène > Fes
After breakfast, we paid the bill (150 DH) and spent a sunny day driving south, slowly approaching Fes. On the way, we stopped to visit Volubilis, the biggest archeological site with Roman ruins in Morocco. Even we are normally feel most at home in nature and wild places, this visit was definitely worth it. It is incredible to see how far the Roman Empire once stretched. Founded in the 3rd century BC, Volubilis was believed to be the capital of the Kingdom of Mauretania and only in the 1st century AC became an important outpost of the Roman Empire, where around 20’000 people used to live.
After an inspiring afternoon admiring the mosaics and wandering through the ruins, we headed to Fez and checked in to our most expensive campsite so far. Before getting there we stopped for our first roadside coffee in the countryside. It was an interesting experience, which we will repeat many times during our stay in Morocco.
Curiosity of the day In Morocco you will often find cars on the side of the road with a proper barista coffee machine in the boot. The machine can be run off a propane generator and the coffee tastes great. It costs around 5 DH, less than 0,50 EUR. We also got two millefeuilles and were gifted a banana.
Day 6 - A rainy day at the campsite
Fes
We had a down day at the campsite due to heavy rain and most shops being closed in the medina of Fes on a Friday. Friday is a sacred day in Morocco, similar to a Sunday for us Europeans. We got some work done and headed to the nearby supermarket (Marjane) to get water and some basic products. Despite buying only few things and trying to be sensitive with the prices, we ended up spending more than 400 MAD, around 40 EUR. A deodorant for example was more than 4 EUR, same goes for a pack of quinoa. On the way back we stopped for another roadside coffee, before making some dinner and getting ready for a big day in the chaos of the Medina of Fez.
Curiosity of the day Supermarkets can be very expensive in Morocco compared to all the rest. We found many products to be at least as expensive as in certain European supermarkets. We will therefore only shop there when in need of certain basic products. For the rest, we will shop locally, prioritising souks (markets) for fruit and vegetables and mini markets for the rest.
Day 7 - Exploring Fes
Fes
Today was a long day exploring Fes, which requires a couple more paragraphs than the other days to try and put into words all the emotions and feelings we felt.
The morning started trying to get our first (red) petit taxi from the camping to Fes el Bali, the Medina of Fes. After the first two unsuccessful negotiations (the drivers were refusing to use the taximeter and were asking for a far too high price), we finally jumped on Ahmed’s taxi, who drove us into town for 25 DH. Due to his friendliness, his smile and the fair price, we gave him an extra 5 DH tip. Out of the taxi and straight into the madness of the Medina, we discovered busy streets, full of different smells and impressions. The merchants were beginning to set up their shops and stands as pedestrians, as well as donkeys and scooters, rushed through the narrow alleys. We enjoyed a tea at Seffarine Square, watching at the metal workers and a lunch in a local place on the main road of the medina. In between we also could not miss the tanneries where men worked animal hides by hand, soaking them in large vats filled with pigeon dung and cow urine among other things. We observed this show that engages all the senses from the terrace of shop No. 10. Sprigs of mint are given out at the entrance, to be held under your nose to combat bad smells from below.
After lunch, I decided quite spontaneously that it was time for me to experience a Moroccan barber to trim my hair and beard. Not necessarily because I felt I needed a trim (Joy did), but because I was intrigued by the experiencing of going to a barber in the medina of Fes. It was definitely worth it! We entered Momo’s shop and were greeted by a friendly and smiling young man. Waiting for my turn to come, I was following, together with the other people in the shop, customer and hairdresser himself included, the live match between Algeria and Burkina Faso, being streamed on Momo’s phone. My turn came and after almost an hour of meticulous work, I was satisfied with the result. Momo works with a lot of attention to detail, passion and love for what he does, and he does it for a fair price. Shukran Momo.
Before heading to the nearby hill to admire Fes el Bali from a different perspective as the sun was setting, we managed to get lost a couple more times through the chaos of the medina. As the merchants were still busy trying to persuade the crowds to buy something, a few pedestrians were trying to misleadingly make us believe that certain alleys were closed (probably to be able to accompany somewhere else, in exchange for a tip), making our job to navigate through the alleys even more complicated. Eventually we did find our way out and headed back by taxi to the camping, exhausted and overwhelmed, but amazed by the show we had witnessed. A unique and fascinating experience, definitely to be tried at least once and one that we will always remember with a smile.
Curiosity of the day Not all bars have toilets in Fes. It can happen quite often in Fes that you go to a bar to eat, and when you need to go to the toilet you are sent to a different bar, in a different building and possibly also a couple of minutes of walk away. It doesn't matter where the bathroom is, the important thing is not to wet your pants.
Slowly we are adapting more and more to the Moroccan lifestyle and culture, and day by day we are gaining in confidence to be able to easily navigate in this world so different from the one we are used to. We are really excited about what awaits us in the coming weeks. Days in the wilderness in the middle of nowhere, wild camping spots and completely new landscapes as we approach the desert and the Atlas Mountains.
Don't miss the next updates, we will share more soon!
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